Often it is desirable in an automatic music system, such as a jukebox system, to be able to play recordings independently of selections provided by users. Such a capability not only calls attention to the system to encourage users to make selections, but also provides an emergency backup if the selection part of the system becomes inoperative. Previous systems for playing recordings independently of user selections play the recordings in a fixed or preprogrammed sequence, resulting in a generally monotonous, and thus unsatisfactory performance.